DoD News

News Article

Pop Artist Unveils Poster to Raise Funds for Pentagon Memorial

WASHINGTON, Oct. 2, 2003  Pop artist Peter Max unveiled a new poster today at the Pentagon that he hopes will raise $1 million for the Pentagon Memorial Fund.

The poster, emblazoned with the Statue of Liberty superimposed over the Pentagon and artistic flags in Max's bold, bright-colored style, will be available for sale nationally beginning in mid-November.

Max will personalize and autograph copies of the limited-edition posters to sell for $150. He expects to sell 9,000 to 10,000 copies. In addition, Max said he plans to sell 25 poster overprints, essentially posters that he embellishes with oil paints, for $8,000.

Proceeds from the sale will go to the Pentagon Memorial Fund, which aims to raise $20 million -- $12 million for construction of the memorial, and $8 million for an endowment to maintain it.

During the unveiling ceremony at the site where a terrorist aircraft crashed into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, and the future site of the Pentagon Memorial, Max said he was so personally affected by the terrorist attacks that he felt driven to do something to contribute.

"I would have gone to the site and moved rocks myself if they would have let me," he said.

Instead, Max turned to the artistic talents that led to his rise to prominence in the pop art world in the 1960s. He created a series of posters to raise money for the September 11th Victims Fund. After visiting the Pentagon last October to see the restoration efforts, he said he felt compelled to create another poster to raise money for the Pentagon Memorial Fund.

"What began as an instinctual response to a tragic event in our nation's history has blossomed into a tangible reminder of the bravery and dedication of the mean and women who serve our nation," said Max. "It is my hope that this project will help in the efforts to build a lasting memorial to their service and sacrifice."

Rosemary O'Brien, an AT&T representative at the ceremony, said the sale of the posters will give all Americans a tangible way to contribute toward construction of the Pentagon Memorial.

The building of the memorial, said Raymond Dubois, DoD's director of administration and management, will transform the site from "a bunch of gravel, dirt and some grass" to "a space to contemplate and remember" those who died during the terrorist attack on the Pentagon.

Jim Laychak, president of the Pentagon Memorial Fund, thanked Max and AT&T for their support for the project.

"We have one chance to do this right," he said. "One chance to build a great memorial, a place of remembrance for those who died, a place of comfort for those of us left behind and a gift for future generations."